MVP Voting Is the Closest in 10 Years : Pro basketball: Magic Johnson wins it again, although Barkley gets more first-place votes. Jordan finishes third.

It was a bittersweet moment for Magic Johnson when he accepted the NBA’s most-valuable-player trophy Tuesday at the Forum Club.

“It’s a good feeling and otherwise a bad time,” Johnson said.

Johnson is restless nowadays. The Lakers were eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in the second round of the playoffs, and he is unaccustomed to so early a vacation.

“I’m used to playing and receiving this award and (unaccustomed to) not knowing what I’m going to do when I go home today,” Johnson said. “So this makes my week a little bit better.”

Johnson, 30, has won the MVP award three times in the last four years and has joined an elite club.

Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone and Larry Bird are the only other players to have been honored three times or more.

Johnson already is the only guard to have won the award more than once. Bob Cousy, Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan were the other guards to win the award.

The voting was the closest in 10 years. Philadelphia’s Charles Barkley got more first-place votes than Johnson, 38-27. Johnson, however, had 636 total points to 614 for Barkley. Jordan was third in the balloting with 564 points and 21 first-place votes.

Johnson dedicated the award to Jim Dart and Dart’s wife, Greta, who were Johnson’s fifth-grade coach and teacher, respectively.

“They’re like my godparents,” Johnson said.

Johnson was at ease at the podium as he joked and even made good-natured fun of Commissioner David Stern, who dropped the trophy last year when he presented it to the Laker player.

This is an unsettling time for the Lakers. Not only are they unaccustomed to sitting back and watching as other teams advance in the playoffs, but also Pat Riley hasn’t decided whether he will return as coach.

When Johnson was asked about Riley’s possibly leaving, he responded with a straight face:

“You didn’t know? I’ve just been named player-coach. We’re going to move Jerry (General Manager West) up to president and I’ll be GM and player-coach.”

Then, Johnson added seriously, “I don’t believe (that Riley will leave) and I won’t until he says to my face that he isn’t going to coach anymore.

“In my heart and mind, he’ll be back. We’d hate to lose him. He has done more for us than we have for him.”

When asked, all kidding aside, whether he would consider becoming a coach, Johnson said:

“No, but if that’s what I had to do to win, yes.”

Johnson has previously indicated that he’ll play four more years for the Lakers and doesn’t intend to coach when he retires.

In earlier introductions, West alluded to those four years and said, perhaps, urgently, “Magic, don’t quit before your time.”

West also said that he doesn’t usually compare players, but he made an exception for Johnson.

“In my days as a basketball player, I’ve never seen a greater player, or winner in my life than Magic.”

Johnson said his latest MVP award was probably more special than the two others because of the competition.

“When we first started off the season, I thought Patrick Ewing was going to run away with it,” Johnson said. “I was mailing my vote in for him.

“Then things tapered off and it was anybody’s race. Charles Barkley then came to life and I thought he would win with me, Michael (Jordan) and the rest just lounging around.

“My whole thinking is to make us the best team possible and not thinking about my own stats. And, if I can win the most-valuable-player (award) by doing that, so be it, because we had a fantastic season and things went well.”

He was, of course, referring to the Lakers’ 63 victories during the regular season, not the playoffs, which are going on without the Lakers, who won five NBA championships during the 1980s.

“I just can’t watch a whole (playoff) game,” Johnson said. “I’m angry and upset that we’re not in it. So now I have to get up and walk away (from the TV set). I have all this energy and no way to burn it off.”

When asked how he assessed the playoffs, Johnson said: “You’ve got to go with the champs (Detroit). Chicago is a team that could beat them, but that’s the only one.

“But Chicago has to have three guys play well every night. Detroit is not going to let Jordan beat them alone.”

There also was the inevitable question of whether the Lakers’ so-called dynasty had ended.

“I’m used to that,” Johnson said. “For the last five years, it has been over for us. It was over last year when Kareem left and we (then) won 63 games. We’re looking forward to getting back there next October and showing people.”

Then, Johnson added: “Anyway, CBS needs us next year (the last season in its contract) because of the ratings. We’re one of the most popular teams.”